Met Office issues yellow wind warning as Storm Helene approaches

Hold on to your hats, the first storm of autumn is on the way!

A spell of very wet and windy weather, whipped up by the remnants of Hurricane Helene, is forecast to affect our weather next week.

Helene is currently an ex-tropical storm in the Atlantic Ocean and will gradually weaken over the next couple of days.

The current track is forecast to merge with the jet stream to bring a deep area of low pressure to the British Isles by Monday night.

According to the Met Office; "There remains large uncertainty in Helene's exact track, however a spell of very strong winds is expected, initially for parts of south-west England and west Wales, then later south-west Scotland and the south-east of Northern Ireland. Winds are likely to gust to 55-65 mph quite widely in the warning area, with possible gusts of 70-80 mph in exposed places."

Exact details are uncertain, but Storm Helene could impact travel plans next week.

"Road, rail, air and ferry services may be affected, with longer journey times and cancellations possible. Some roads and bridges may close. Fallen trees may be an additional hazard. There is a chance that power cuts may occur."

At the moment the yellow warning area covers Co.Down, this could be upgraded closer to the time, worth keeping an eye on.

How is the weather looking this weekend?

Not great if you have outdoor plans.

Earlier this week, the Met Office and Met Éireann unvealed a list of the names of this seasons storms.

First introduced in 2015, this is the fourth year they have jointly run the ‘Name our Storms’ scheme, aimed at raising awareness of severe weather before it hits.

The first storm will be ‘male’ and named Ali, while the second storm will be ‘female’ and named Bronagh, following the alternating male/female pattern established by the US National Hurricane Center in the 1970s

• hurricane helene
• northern ireland